


Forest Screams

by Vinnocent



Series: Wolfstuck [1]
Category: Homestuck, Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Alternate Universe - No Sburb/Sgrub Sessions, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Animal Attack, Blood, Color Blindness, Gen, Humanstuck, Needles, Stabdads
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-30
Updated: 2016-01-31
Packaged: 2018-05-17 05:41:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 14,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5856328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vinnocent/pseuds/Vinnocent
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which a teenage boy goes wandering in the woods at night with a friend, suffers an animal attack, and then begins to experience strange changes. Features one screaming girl, a mysterious case of sudden onset color-blindness, unexplained athletic ability, three attempts on the main character's life, and inconvenient hormones.<br/>(Homestuck characters in Teen Wolf universe.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Parts of the Teen Wolf universe have been changed or elaborated on.

“ARROOOOOOOO!”

Your head shoots up at the sound, and you look around on high alert as though there's a chance in hell you can figure out where that sound is coming from. “Dammit, Megido, I told you this was a bad idea. Gonna get fuckin' eaten by wolves. Bro will find me all maimed and shit, and I'll be given a styrofoam tombstone reading ‘I warned you, bro.’”

“That is the opposite of what you said,” Aradia reminds you. She carefully pries up a rock and peeks under it with a flashlight. She sighs in disappointment when the only result is cockroaches fleeing everywhere. “As I recall, what you said was, ‘Dude, I’m bored. Let’s find dead things.’ Besides, everyone knows there aren’t any wolves in California.”

“OW-OW-OWWOOOOOOO!”

Angrily, you jab a finger at the empty forest. “Then what is that?” you demand.

Aradia tilts her head like she's actually considering the howls for the first time. Finally, she suggests, “I dunno, wind maybe?”

You kick at an old stump. Instead of getting a satisfying thump out of it, the hollow wood caves in, releasing gnats and spores. Eugh. “Okay, this is ridiculous. We’re not going to find anything in the middle of the night, with limited vision, sticking to the trails.”

Aradia glowers over her shoulder. “Dave, this was your idea.”

“I know it was my－” You're interrupted when Aradia suddenly lets out a blood-curdling scream.

She stops as soon as she’d begun. Afterward, she simply sits there on her knees on the forest floor, staring into the empty middlespace like she's in shock.

“THE FUCK WAS THAT?!” you demand. Let it never be said that you aren't sensitive and caring about your friends.

Whatever it was, Aradia immediately snaps out of it. She's on her feet and running down the trail. “COME ON, DAVE!”

“WHAT THE HELL, MEGIDO!” But you soon realized that if you don’t start running, you're going to quickly lose her. Dammit. You take off after her. She’s so pale, she practically glows in the dark, but she dresses all in black and has that huge mass of hair, so… yeah, you actually do lose sight pretty quickly. And, because you’re an idiot, you’re so concentrated on her that you lose the path too.

Shit. Okay, stop panicking. Aradia… Aradia just had an episode or something. Or is pranking you. She wasn’t worried at all right up until she screamed at what was, as far as you could tell, absolutely nothing. No wolves in California. There are bears, but bears don’t howl. Thy tend to avoid cities unless resources are low, anyway. Not that you’re currently _in_ the city. No, Dave, stop thinking about bears and concentrate.

You crouch low to the ground to get a better view of the subtle differences in grade, trying to find the path. There’s a few spots that might be path, but you’re not sure. You’re standing on a gentle slope in about two inches of leaf litter, so you should try to be careful where you step on your way to these maybe-paths, and…

And something behind you is _breathing_.

Slowly, you turn your head. Something big. Something dark. Something with _teeth_.

You run. Fuck paths, you are running in the direction of away, zig-zagging between trees on what is a quickly increasing slope as fast as you can. You feel like your heart is going to burst from your chest. Your legs burn with the need to be faster than they are. You’re well-trained, but not for this.

It’s behind you. Fuck. Fuck. Shit. It’s behind you. You swear you can feel teeth grazing your heels with every step off the ground.

So, of course, you trip and fall. You’re briefly heels over head before you hit the ground on your back and keep tumbling sideways. Before you can figure out how to stop yourself, nature figures that out for you, and you’re braked by a tree trunk to the ribcage. Ow.

It’s on you. Claws tear into your shirt. Teeth sink into your unguarded flesh. You’re going to die.

Then, as quickly as it was there, it’s gone.

You wait, pain sinking into your bones. You’re crying uncontrollably, starting to snot up. Fantastic. You don’t realize you’re holding your breath until you hear that howl again in the distance and finally release it. You try to pull yourself up against the tree, but cry out at the pain. You look down at your belly, where your borrowed Beacon County Sheriff’s Department hoodie has been pushed up, exposing yourself to what is a surprisingly small bite for a bear. Big for a wolf. About human-size, actually, but sharper.

Great, instead of being eaten alive, you’re going to die of infection.

You grit your teeth through the pain and lift yourself into sitting position anyway. You pull your cellphone out of your hoodie pocket. Bro would be able to help you faster, having the only car, but you don’t feel like being yelled at. You call Dirk instead.

After four rings, he answers with, “I’m going to presume by the fact that you’re calling instead of shouting that you are not, in fact, in your room?”

“I need you to pick me up,” you tell him, and wow your voice sounds like shit, all breathless and raw. No playing this one cool.

“How exactly? I don’t have a car, and Bro’s out on a call,” he said.

“Dude, I don’t care!” you snap. “Walk if you have to! I cannot get my ass back home on my own, and I don’t know if Aradia’s even still here!” It occurs to you that you probably should’ve called her first. Oh well, you have the excuse of blood loss. You’ll check on her after Dirk is on his way.

“What? What the fuck happened? Why do you sound like you’ve been crying? Why were you with Aradia Droog?”

“Megido,” you correct him. “We were in the forest looking for specimens. We got separated. An animal attacked me. I’m bleeding. Please. Please, Dirk, I’m serious. I need you to come get me. I don’t know where I am. I lost the path. I can barely sit up.”

There’s a pause. Finally, he says, “Okay, yeah, I’m texting Roxy, and she seems sober. She thinks she can pick me up and go out to get you in less than fifteen minutes, if she sticks to the roads without speed traps. How much battery do you have?”

You check. “Seventy-six percent,” you tell him.

“Cool. Make sure all your apps are turned off. Leave the phone on so I can use GPS to find you,” he instructs. “Do your best to stop any bleeding and take care of yourself while you wait. If you can get your ass into a tree so it doesn’t find you again, do so.” He hangs up.

He seems to be assuming it was a bear. Which is sort of reasonable. No wolves in California, and aggressive dogs, while scary as fuck, aren’t too challenging for either of you. It didn’t seem _that_ big, though. Also: you’re not fucking dead, which you’re pretty sure is always the outcome with bears.

You consider your wound for a second, then carefully pull off your hoodie, fold it up, and press it as hard as you can against it. Fuck that hurts. You hope the tree didn’t crack a rib.

The wait for him and Roxy is shorter than you expected. You may have dozed off at some point. You don’t actually recall falling asleep or waking up, but there’s no way she’s _that_ fast. You are also super fucking exhausted. Deep in the bone tired. Soon as this wound gets dressed, you’re gonna sleep for a year.

Actually, come to think of it, you don’t actually remember much about your rescue, either. You remember being hauled painfully to your feet while Dirk and Roxy argued about… something. Now, you’re in the back of Roxy’s pink Cadillac (sorry, Cat-illac), probably ruining the leather. They’re still arguing quietly in the front while she drives.

Your phone buzzes in your pocket, and you remember that you still haven’t checked on Aradia. You pull it out, scroll through the slew of worried messages, and then tell her you’re alive and with Dirk and you’ll explain later. She texts back that she told Bro she was alone in the woods, so to keep the same story if/when he asks.

TG: what do you mean you told bro  
AA: dave i told you! i went back to look for you but he caught me and made me go home!  
AA: dad is so pissed he’s now a suspect because i was there D:

What? “Dirk, why’s Bro in the woods?” you ask.

Dirk stiffens, and you catch Roxy throwing him a Look. He sighs. “There was a murder, Dave. Right before you called, he left because someone heard screams in the woods,” he says. “I assumed it was you, but we were listening to the scanner on the way here to find out if anyone got to you first. Turns out, you weren’t the screamer. Someone gutted Cronus Ampora.”

“Someone or something?” you press.

Dirk shrugs, but you can tell he’s bothered. “Animal attack is a possibility, but they’re treating it as a murder for now,” he tells you. He glances back at you in the rearview mirror. “But you’re okay.” He says it like it’s a statement, but you know it’s a question. You nod. He goes back to pretending he doesn’t care, but he’s been tapping relentlessly on the side of his bulky, self-built Augmented Reality shades. “Right, well, we aren’t telling Bro about this. He’ll flip his shit that you were so close to a murder. Unless you saw something, there’s no reason to add you to his worries right now.”

You shake your head. “Nah, it was just an animal,” you tell him. You’re already texting Aradia back, telling her that she doesn’t have to worry. It was an Ampora that died and, as far as either of you have heard, her dad’s crew has no beef with the Amporas, sketchy as they may be.

“Dude, you keep saying ‘animal,’” Roxy points out. “Doncha know what it was?” And Dirk’s worried look returns to the mirror. Great. Thanks Roxy.

You shrug, trying to pretend it’s nothing. “Much smaller than a bear. Bigger than a dog. Fast as shit.”

“Cougar?” Dirk asks.

You snicker. “I am way too tired to make the obvious joke there,” you tell him. An obvious derailment, but he falls for it. Surreptitiously, you lift the hoodie from off your stomach. The caked blood pulls a bit at the wound before the fabric breaks away. Ow. Yeah, you own way too many animal skulls to be confused about what bite marks look like.

This doesn’t look like any animal you know.

－ －

You’re awakened by the sound of Dirk pounding on your door. “Dave, get the fuck up! I’m not going to be responsible for you being late!”

You groan and roll slightly closer to the edge of the bed.

“Don’t think I won’t take the door off the hinges again!”

“UUGH FINE, ASSHOLE!” you shout back. You slide off the edge of the bed, letting your ass hit the floor. You wipe your eyes and look around. You’re definitely not awake yet. Everything has a weird yellowish hue because your eyes weren’t ready to be used yet. You glance at the clock, wondering why Dirk was the one to get you up. You have about twenty minutes to get you ass clean, dressed, and _maybe_ fed. Wow, thanks, Dick. Did you sleep through your alarm? That’s like nine hours of sleep, and you feel like you got two. Maybe you got an infection from the bite despite all the cleaning and disinfecting with the wound dressing last night. If you have to go to the hospital, Bro will kick your ass.

You decide to stop debating non-emergency details and head to the bathroom for a quick hobo shower from the sink. Destinkify and throw on something not completely disastrous. You’ve been putting effort into looking less like your “siblings” (one half-brother and one father-in-denial) and more like someone with their shit together. It would be a shame to lose traction now. Though, you’re pretty irritated to find that _all_ of your red shirts have disappeared. You know you washed them, so it's probably retribution from Dirk for having to go fetch you last night.

After rinsing your face, you check the mirror for any egregious breakouts, and are surprised by the reflection looking back. It takes you a couple seconds to figure out why you look slightly off, and then you notice the eyes.

They’re the wrong color.

Not by much. It’s not a big change. All the Striders have amber eyes. Rose is a bit more brown-hazel, and Roxy is brown-eyed. Not that anyone remembers anymore with their affinity for weird contacts, just like Mom. But your golden brown has suddenly gotten paler. Not a lot. But enough to be noticed by someone who sees your eyes literally every day like, say, yourself.

Okay, no, stomp that WebMD impulse. You do not have cancer. You know how light and reflection work; you’re a goddamn photographer. Obviously, Bro bought “warm” bulbs instead of “cool white.” Explains why your room is yellow.

If you make extra sure that you have on the shitty aviators John gave you before you leave the apartment, that’s purely coincidence. You love those aviators.

As soon as your feet hit the pavement, Rose demands you lift up your shirt. “Woah, hold the fuck up there, Lalonde. I thought I was supposed to be the one with the repressed incest inclinations,” you drawl.

She rolls her eyes. “You got blood on my car,” she said. “I want to see how bad it is.” You glance to the car. It's yet another cat-themed Cadillac, same model as the pink one, but this one's blue. You're fairly certain you've never seen it before.

She crosses her arms impatiently, and you roll your eyes right back at her, forgetting that she can’t see because, oh yeah, shades. Which you definitely wear all the time and should be used to by now. “Tiny little puppy bite, Lalonde,” you tell her. “Chill.”

“Roxy said you were flipping your shit,” she said. “You’re not getting in the car until I’ve seen it for myself and evaluate the degree to which you and your brother are complete idiots for not going to the hospital.”

You sigh and call her a pervert but lift your shirt and carefully pull back the gauze pad taped over the bite. You blink in surprise. Your previously painful and bloody wound is now a circle of tiny puncture wounds, already scabbed over.

She rolls her eyes again, but you see her visibly relax. “You are such a baby,” she says, getting back in her car.

You forget how to move. What the hell is happening to your body?

She honks at you. “Strider! Stop ogling yourself and get in the car! We’re going to be late!”


	2. Chapter 2

Jade is acting weird. Weird even for Jade. Sure, she greeted you with her usual morning tackle. (Which has gotten so much more awkward since she grew boobs, but you haven’t got the heart to tell her.) This time, however, she hesitated before letting you go. She fucking _took a sniff_.

“What the hell, Harley?!” you’d demanded. Is there something going around to the girls in your class? Well, actually, Jade’s a sixteen-year-old senior, but the point still stands.

She released you with a strange smile. “Haha, um, John said it would be funny! Oh man was he right! You should see your face!”

As per usual during their pranks, your face was doing absolutely fucking nothing. And, thing is, that wasn’t the end of the weirdness. She’s constantly whispering to John between classes, and every time she’s actually near you, she is _right up on you_ like she’s considering riding you in the middle of the fucking hall. On two occasions, you actually have to shove her off you.

You know John loves rattling you and easily ropes Jade into “helping,” but this is absurd.

During free period, you settle yourself in a back corner of the library to finally get some space, pull out your phone, and pull up Pesterchum. Sure enough, John and Jade have both left messages.

\-- ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering turntechGodhead [TG] \--  
EB: hey  
EB: heeeeeeeey  
EB: hey dave hey  
EB: seriously dave are you okay? rose said you were attacked!  
TG: is that why youve been weird all day

Ugh, what is Pesterchum doing to your font colors? This stupid thing is always acting up.

\-- gardenGnostic [GG] began pestering turntechGodhead [TG] \--  
GG: um dave are you mad at me?  
GG: im sorry :(  
GG: i think  
GG: i really think we should talk  
TG: no jade im not mad at you we dont need to talk  
TG: im just not in the mood for pranks right now  
GG: pranks?

EB: what i haven’t been weird! haha! oh man, dave, you’re so silly sometimes!  
TG: wow man that is so convincing  
TG: color me convinced  
TG: which apparently is brown because pesterchum can’t manage red right now  
TG: lookup conviction in the dictionary you will see a picture of this moment where i am mad convinced as hell by you bro  
TG: it will be brown  
TG: hold on im gonna try to update  
EB: what are you talking about?

TG: jade you and john have absolutely no pokerface  
TG: youve been up to shit all day  
TG: tittering at each other in the halls  
TG: all pssst pssst ssh quiet  
GG: oh that? that wasn’t pranking  
TG: brb gotta update so the colors fix  
GG: we were just talking about  
GG: the colors?  
GG: oh…  
GG: dave we really have to talk  
TG: chill harley

You open your app settings, but it claims Pesterchum is on the latest version, last updated a month ago, so there would be no new changes. You check the OS, but again, there’s no new versions and it hasn’t updated in a week. Urg, you really don’t want to power cycle it.

EB: um dave do you know what bit you?  
TG: cougar  
TG: why

What is his trick even supposed to be? You probably wouldn’t be half as irritable about it if you just knew what the hell he was up to instead of having the nerve-grating stress of guesswork on top of everything else.

EB: you’re sure?  
TG: i think i would know

Apparently, you wouldn’t know, but he doesn’t need to know that. Not if he’s going to be an asshole about it.

EB: okay, dave! i’m sorry i made you mad today. i hope you feel better!  
\-- ectoBiologist [EB] ceased pestering turntechGodhead [TG] \--

Well, now you feel like an ass. Quick, find a distraction!

TG: i cant get the colors fixed ill have to wait for the next update  
TG: whatd ya wanna talk about  
GG: huh? oh um john explained.  
GG: youre  
GG: youre SURE it was a cougar right?  
TG: whyre all yall obsessed with this  
TG: this bite is just a few pinpricks no big deal ask rose  
GG: just pinpricks? like a warning bite? did it seem worse last night?  
TG: what do i look like the animal police its fine  
GG: dave, this is important!!!  
GG: i need to know if it was a werewolf!!!

You almost crack up right there in the back of the tomb-silent library, but manage to stifle it with a coughing fit. You wait a moment to see if the librarian will yell at you anyway, and then you get back to typing.

TG: nah i definitely would’ve noticed if it was a werewolf  
GG: i suppose thats true…  
GG: okay, dave, i believe you! sorry i was so pushy!  
GG: and, um, sorry about climbing on you?

You are definitely not blushing.

TG: what kind of gentleman would i be to complain about that  
GG: dave you have never once in your life been a gentleman  
TG: scuze you

Your friends are massive dorks, and you feel a lot better now.

You feel a lot worse when you get home and find the package from the developer. You swear loudly as you flip through the photos. Fifty shots, all ruined. Not having your own darkroom is becoming a massive hindrance. Sure, there’s no room in the apartment, but maybe you can whine at Mom about it when Bro isn’t around to hear. Her house is fucking huge, after all.

Dirk pokes his head out of his room. “What happened?”

You throw the photos down onto the coffee table in disgust and collapse back on the futon/couch. “They’re all utterly fucking ruined. They got the chemicals wrong or something. The colors are completely off.”

He comes over and picks up the photos. He scowls, lifts up the AR shades for a better look, and continues scowling. “Look, Princess, I know you’re a sensitive artist and all, but don’t you think you’re being a little overdramatic?”

“OVERDRAMATIC!” you screech. You point to a photo of the park. “That grass looks dead! That fire hydrant is muddy-looking! Rose’s scarf is like fucking periwinkle or something.”

Dirk is staring at you.

“I’m not being overdramatic!” you insist. “It’s hideous! I had to pay for these from my own pocket, you know, and they just－”

“Dave, the hydrant is red.”

You rub your temple. You really don’t need this migraine right now. “Yes, Dirk, I know fire hydrants are red. That’s my point. That one’s shit color.”

He’s still staring at you like you’ve grown horns. “That’s _my_ point,” he tells you. “In that picture? That fire hydrant? It’s red. I’m telling you that as I look at it right now, the grass is bright green, the hydrant is red, and Rose’s scarf is violet.”

You look at the picture again. You look at him. The picture again. You feel like you might throw up. “What?”

He puts the photos down carefully and pulls at your arm. “Come on,” he says. “We’re going to the hospital.”

As it turns out, there’s no such thing as sudden onset colorblindness. Well… there sort of is, but you don’t have alzheimer's and you’ve gotten your pubes by now, so the doctor is pretty sure you’re faking. Dirk tears into him, but you’re too zoned out try any convincing of your own. In the end, the doctor decides it’s stress just to get Dirk out of there and prescribes bedrest. Dirk rants the whole way home, much to the irritation of literally everyone on the bus.

You flop down in bed and don’t get up again until you’re called out for dinner. Meat Lover’s pizza. It’s like Bro is setting you up for the joke, and you don’t have the energy to give a shit. You poke at the brown pepperoni on the slice in front of you. Somehow, you don’t really feel like eating.

“Well, we can make an appointment with his actual doctor tomorrow,” says Bro. “It’s possible it’s something temporary like a head injury or… I dunno, iron levels or something.”

“If it’s a head injury, Social Services is gonna interview us again,” Dirk grouses.

“I’ll handle it,” says Bro. “If he’s losing his vision, then I really don’t care how we look to the government, so long as it’s handled.”

“Well, he still sees fine. It’s just colors.”

“Yeah, but it’s colors suddenly out of nowhere,” argues Bro. “That’s hella concerning.”

“What about Doc?” Dirk suggests. “Can she run some extra tests or something?”

“Lalonde?” Bro runs his hand back through his thinning hair. Whiter than you remember. Have you neglected to notice how much he’s grayed, or can you just not see his hair color? “I’m not sure she’s that kind of doctor. Actually… I have no idea what kind of doctor she is. I guess I can ask, but let’s try his actual GP first.”

“Well, he’s her kid. She should at least know, shouldn’t she?”

“I’m not hungry,” you say, and you stand to go back to your room.

“Dave, we’re talking about _your_ condition!” Bro snaps.

“Yeah, well, it seems like you don’t actually need me here for that,” you snarl back. You dodge into your room and slam the door shut before he can object.

This has quite possibly been the worst twenty-four hours of your life, and all you want is to go back to sleep and wake up again in the real world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I know the colorblindness isn't canon to Teen Wolf, but hey while we're changing details anyway, why not make our werewolves a little more actually wolfish?
> 
> 2/13/2016 Edit: Changed "DCS" to "Social Services"


	3. Chapter 3

You turn over in your bed when you get cold and end up with a mouthful of leaflitter. What?

Slowly, you raise up and look around, finding yourself half-naked in the woods. This… this is new. You search the pockets of your pajama pants, but of course you don’t sleep with your phone in your fucking pocket. Craptastic. Welp, sun is on you left, so there’s probably a road somewhere in the direction of…

“rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr”

You freeze. That’s wind. That has to be wind.

There are no wolves in California.

“rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr”

Slowly, you look over your shoulder at the hulking grey shape silhouetted against the morning fog. Don’t run. Don’t run. Wolves give chase when you run. Don’t run. Don’t turn your back. Remember that video of the buffalo?

“rrrrrrrrrrrrr”

You are a lot smaller than a buffalo.

“rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr”

But it’s alone. The buffalo required a whole pack to bring it down. You may just be one person, but it’s just one wolf. Maybe that’s why it’s out this far. It’s probably fucking insane or something. It’s also ginormous. And its back legs are slightly longer than its front ones, more like a human.

It steps toward you. You step back. It just keeps vocalizing. Your empty, naked hand grasps for a weapon that isn’t there.

This isn’t real. It can’t be real. It’s not… This sort of thing doesn’t happen.

The wolf-monster abruptly stops vocalizing and turns to look off somewhere, suddenly distracted by something you can’t see. You take the opportunity and take off running, and it takes off after you with just a moment’s delay. You pray to whatever might hear that the moment is enough.

While praying, you run smack into Jake Harley. “Oh, thank god!” Jake exclaims, already running again, pulling you along with him. He’s faster than you. You vaguely recall that he used to be captain of the track team.

“J-Jake, it’s a－!” What? What the hell are you supposed to be warning him about? A _monster?_ What are you, twelve?

“I know, hurry!”

Behind you is an eruption of snarls. You risk a glance over your shoulder to see a tornado of teeth, claws, black fur, and white fur. “Becquerel?” you ask.

Jake nods, grinning. “Yeah, he found you!” he says. “Road’s right up here.” He shoves two fingers into his mouth and whistles long and loud. There’s a blur of motion to your left, and you glance to see Jade hurtling fallen logs like she’s a champion freerunner. This from the girl who claimed she wasn’t interested in athletics. Funny what fear can do to a person.

It’s when she races ahead to get to the road first that you realize that Jake has been running slower than he’s capable of for your sake. Like you haven’t been humiliated enough lately.

Jade pulls open all the car doors so that you and Jake can dive in right away, shaving precious seconds off your time. You land right next to a shotgun. You love this family a lot.

You all slam your doors shut, and Jake hits the locks right as Becquerel is thrown into the windshield hard enough to cause a few thin cracks to split across the surface of the glass. “BEC!” Jade screams.

Jake scowls, but he shoves the his keys in the ignition, starts the old 4runner, and throws it into reverse. The SUV jerks backward, and Becquerel rolls limply to the ground. “Jake, we can’t just leave him!” Jade screams.

“The alpha wants Dave, not Bec. He’ll be fine if he takes the air and keeps running.” Jake throws the gear stick forward again. He turns the SUV to flee the parking lot, only to see the beast standing there at the only exit. In full daylight, you can see it is definitely a werewolf, though the finer features are still indistinct in the fog. You maybe throw up a little.

Jake and Jade exchange glances. Jade reaches back for the shotgun and lowers her window. Jake floors it. Holy fuck, this family is crazy. You roll to the floor and brace yourself for impact as Jade hangs out the window and takes aim.

After a moment, she pulls back inside. “It fled,” she informs you. “You can sit up now.”

You sit up, buckle in. Jake doesn’t stop speeding until you’re back in the town proper.

“You’ve done this before,” you realize.

“Huh?” asks Jake. He’s texting while he waits at the light. You glance over his shoulder to see he’s on Pesterchum, talking to a TT. That could be Rose or Bro. Not Dirk, because Jake generally avoids talking to Dirk, especially for the past several months. If Rose’s scarf was blue in the photo, that probably means this yellow-brown text is Bro. Probably. You can’t see well enough from your position to see what they’re saying. You do notice that, somehow, Jake and Bro appear to be using different fonts.

You explain, “I got bit and started seeing colors funny, and suddenly Jade’s all ‘hey, you’re not a werewolf, are you?’ Which, lol, why would I be a werewolf? That’s hilarious and impossible, right?”

Jake glances at his cousin. “You asked straight out?” he says. “That’s… a tad on the nose.” You snort at that. If Jake Harley thinks someone’s been too straightforward, then they have been _really_ straightforward.

She just shrugs. “I kind of assumed he would know.” She points through the windshield. “And it’s the third light now,” she tells him. He swears under his breath, tucks the phone away, and starts driving again.

“What I’m saying is, is that it’s weird,” I tell them. “It’s weird that you jump directly to the right insane conclusion. And then I wake up in the middle of the fucking woods, about to be attacked _again_ , and you guys already know? You’ve done this before, haven’t you?”

Jade just looks at you with an expression of confusion and shrugs. “Well, yeah, we know werewolves, but you’re the first bitten one we’ve had to rescue from his alpha.” She pauses, thinking. “Actually, I think you’re like… the second or third bitten one I’ve met ever.”

“There’s other kinds?” you ask a bit dumbly.

“Well, yeah,” Jade laughs. “Jake and I were born werewolves!”

“Oh,” you say. “Right. Of course, you are. Silly me.”

Jade just laughs at you and straightens back up in her seat. “I’m green-blind, too, remember?” she prompts. “Wolves don’t see green. It’s not really necessary, and I guess the magic needs a downside.”

“Upending my life isn’t enough of a downside?” you snarl. You are maybe a little bit bitter.

Jade stiffens. She turns to look out the window. Jake sighs and says, “It doesn’t have to be like that. If we can find you a nice alpha… you can learn to live with it. It’s fine, really.”

“A nice alpha?” you repeat.

“There were wolf hairs on Cronus,” said Jake. “In the wounds. We think that whoever bit you zotzed him. We still don’t know why. But they’re using you. You’re their beta. They brought you out into those woods to test their power and to intimidate you.”

“Well, it worked,” you sulk. “Did you… Have you told Bro?”

Now it’s Jake who stiffens. “I… I don’t think that would be a good idea,” he says. “The less people in the know the better. The last time the public started learning things… It didn’t end well.”

“Rose already figured it out, though,” Jade informs you quietly.

You roll your eyes and settle back in your seat. “Of course she did.” Your blood feels like it’s on fire, and you lean your forehead against the bare window. “So let me see if I’ve got this straight. I was bitten by the werewolf that killed Cronus. We don’t know who that is, why they killed him, or why they bit me. But now they’re using me, because I’m their beta. There’s the possibility that we could find me another alpha who is, hopeful, not a murderer intent on puppeteering my body while I sleep. I’m hoping that’s not a high bar in canine culture. But there’s no way to fix it?”

“Fix it?” asks Jake.

“Cure me,” you snarl. So maybe you’re feeling a little testy. It hasn’t been a great couple of days for you so far. “Get it _out_.”

Jake tenses and starts to say something, but Jade puts a hand on his arm. He takes a deep breath and exhales slowly. Jade chews her lip for a moment, then says, “I have never ever heard a real case of a bitten werewolf getting their humanity back.”

“Great.” You lean against the window again.

“But…”

“Jade!” There’s a warning in Jake’s voice that immediately piques your interest. “We’re talking about a vicious murderer here. I wouldn’t let you near them if they were _human_ , but someone with alpha power?”

“It’s not impossible! Especially with help!”

“Let the sheriff do his job,” Jake insists.

“But _the sheriff_ doesn’t know this is a werewolf!” you argue. “How is he any better equipped than us?”

“Because he has _me_ ,” Jake snaps.

Again, Jade puts her hand on his arm. “Don’t I also have you?” she asks, and when Jake briefly glances away from the road to her, you can see his guilt clearly. “Look, I’m not saying we should interfere, because you’re right. We’re not equipped, and that’s not our jobs. But if the opportunity arises… If there’s even a chance it’s true… Jake, Dave didn’t consent to this. It isn’t right!”

“Chance that what’s true?” you press, leaning forward.

Jake sighs. “Alpha power is gained by force. You kill an alpha, you gain their power,” he says. “But… there’s a rumor. Unsubstantiated. But it’s thought that, maybe, if a bitten werewolf is able to personally be the one to kill the alpha that bit him… It might give you your humanity back.”

“Well, then it’s worth the risk, isn’t it?” you say. “Either I’m free and human, or no one can control me ever again.”

“Because some alphas kills alphas,” says Jake. You have to admit, it wasn’t the answer you expected. “I’m willing to bet that your alpha knows that. That’s why they bit you. They don’t want a pack; they want a human shield. If killing them doesn’t work? If you become an alpha instead? You’ll become a target to an even bigger beast.”


	4. Chapter 4

School is mostly awkward. Jake had swung by your apartment long enough for you to get dressed and grab your bag (where you discovered that Dirk had, in fact, removed your door when you hadn't answered that morning and had also neglected to put it back), then took you to the school, just in time for you and Jade to be late to your first classes, which is a good way of dodging Rose. Nine months older is, apparently, just enough of a leg-up to put her in the grade ahead of you.

Nonetheless, you’re pretty much immediately barraged with Pesterchum messages. It seems that after Dirk and Bro had discovered you missing this morning, they had called everyone you’d ever met.

Which appears to be about six people. You’re the socialite; it is you.

“Can anyone tell me the value of X in two X over fifteen equals four?”

Ignoring the teacher, you tell John and Jade via Pesterchum that you’ll go over the details at lunch with Jade, the only time all four of you have together. You tell Aradia that her dad is not being blamed: you had been sleepwalking. You also dump the sleepwalking story on Roxy, Dirk, Mom, Tavros, and Karkat.

“Guys, seriously, this is math class. You’re going to have to do math.”

If it weren’t for John, you’d take the placement test again to get into Junior year with Rose. You’re pretty sure you’re _at least_ a year ahead of the idiots in your class, due to how much the school repeats lessons for people who weren’t paying attention. In fact, you’re pretty sure this is one of the exact same problems the class worked on yesterday. It’s basic PEMDAS, people. Hell, it’s really only the M and D in this particular example.

You message Roxy asking if she or the Captor twins can pull Jake’s conversation with Bro and send it to you. You’re pretty sure it was about you and feel entitled to snoop. If, by chance, it doesn’t mesh with the whole “sleepwalking” story, you’re sure that, unlike Dirk, you can convince her or Mituna to keep a secret. While Sollux wouldn’t do such a favor out of the goodness of his heart, he can at least be relied on to give a fair price for bribes.

\-- tipsyGnostalgic [TG] began pestering turntechGodhead [TG] \--  
TG: hey broski im fraid i ant got time t comb thru all that chtter log so imma send u the hole thinf  
TG: *aint  
TG: *to  
TG: *fuckit theres lots  
TG: …  
TG: rox it is 8 30 in the morning  
TG: ur the 1 that tested me!!  
TG: *texted  
TG: the issue isnt me chatting at 8 30 in the morning its you being drunk off your ass at 8 30 in the morning  
TG: not drunk sleepy

You’re not sure you believe her, but you know the only person who can do anything about it is also in school right now.

TG: okay just checkin  
TG: thanks for the chatlog well talk later yeah  
TG: obvs

“Two X over fifteen equals four,” the teacher reminds everyone.

With an annoyed sigh, you snap, “X equals thirty. Can we move the fuck on now?”

Slowly, tittering arises around you. That’s… not the usual response. You put your phone down and look up. Oh. Right. You’re not in algebra right now.

Ms. Whatsherface the softball coach glowers at you from her desk. “I appreciate the enthusiasm, Strider, but in this study hall, you’re actually expected to solve your homework _silently_ ,” she reminds you.

Your chest tightens, and you kind of want to punch her. You take a deep breath and remind yourself that she has no way of knowing that your new wolfy powers are accidentally listening in to the class next door. You sink down in your seat, pick up your phone again, and open the file Roxy sent you, which is about a month of chatlog between Jake and Bro. You jump to the bottom.

You’re really glad she didn’t have the time to peruse for the relevant information, because it turns out they weren’t just talking about you.

GT: Hey! You can call everyone off we found dave in the woods!  
TT: what  
TT: was it the preserve  
GT: Yeah i think he was sleepwalking?  
GT: Ill take him home then school no worries!  
TT: no worries  
TT: deputy do you realize that what you just said to me is  
TT: i just found your SON lying UNCONSCIOUS and PRONE in the same place where we recently found A MURDER VICTIM  
GT: Oh.  
GT: Um hey speaking of the case and not at all derailing from present embarrassing conversations...  
GT: Have there been any developments overnight?  
TT: meh not really  
TT: brought nitram in last night because megido sr tipped us that he was the last person to stick his dick in ampora  
GT: … Im going to assume you mean rufioh.  
TT: yes of course i mean rufioh  
TT: there are two other nitrams i know of: way too underage and way too dead  
TT: so yes i am talking about slutty mcshitface  
GT: Sir you dont really think he killed anyone do you?  
TT: absolutely not  
TT: but i cannot arrest him for making roxy cry  
GT: Sir…   
GT: I dont mean to be rude or anything but…  
GT: That sounds *highly* unprofessional.  
TT: when the hell have i ever been professional  
TT: besides i have been waiting months for an excuse to scare him shitless  
TT: and this has the added bonus of maybe getting some info on amporas behaviors lately  
GT: …  
GT: I think ill just pretend we didnt have this conversation if thats alright with you sir.  
TT: yeah sure  
TT: you are sure that he is fine though  
GT: Dave?  
GT: I think hes a little scared. Dont tell him I said so. But no injuries.  
TT: cool  
TT: oh and one more thing  
TT: there is another body  
GT: WHAT???  
GT: Why is this something youve tacked on to the end of a text conversation???  
TT: not our department  
TT: was just over the county line  
TT: it is a weird coincidence though and i would like you to head over there as soon as you drop the kids off  
GT: Will do.

Well… That’s certainly… Information. Half of which you wish you could immediately forget. The other half, you could do with a LOT more details on. Maybe Jade can bug him later for corpse info. You cut the chatlog down to the last eight sentences and send it back out to Jade, John, and Rose. After a moment’s hesitation, you send it to Dirk, too. You’re not sure what you want to tell him about the things that are going on, the way he tends to rip problems apart to find the flaw, but if there’s a conspiracy afoot, he makes a damn good bloodhound.

Before you can talk to anyone at lunch, however, you have to get through gym class, which you hate as much as most people. You’re generally a pretty fit person, thanks to your family being fucking insane; that’s not the problem. The problem is that you are very definitely not a teamwork person, and you are not good with over-complicated details like, say, the rules of basketball. Generally, you solve this problem with a leisurely stroll behind the main group, barely pretending that you’re actually attempting to keep up with the game at hand.

Today, however, that seems to be everyone’s plan. They’re all so agonizing slow that you can’t help but reach out and slap the ball away from a passing player.

Whistle blows. “STRIDER!” You put your hands up innocently. “If you’re actually going to play this time, then play right!”

Well. Fine then.

You stand with your hands in your pockets and wait for the game to restart while your classmates glare at you. Across the court, involved in a separate half-court game, John shoots you a curious look, and you shrug back.

The whistle blows again. The two dudes facing off in some weird sports version of gay chicken jump up to slap the ball toward their team. You take one step forward, catch the ball, dribble it up closer to the hoop, and throw it against the backboard at such an angle that it falls into the hoop.

Your classmates are staring at you. “Did you just casually make a successful layup?” asks Nepeta.

“What, like it’s hard?”

The coach grabs the ball and throws it back at your face. You catch it easily. “Do it again,” she demands.

You make a face. “Ugh, do I have to?”

“It’s a participation grade, Strider. It’s time you participated,” she snarls, and you are dead certain that this is not at all her actual motivation. “Now try the shot again.”

You sigh, go back into stance, and throw the ball. It glides through the hoop smooth as silk, this time arching perfectly so it doesn't even touch the backboard.

The coach looks at the goal, then you, then the goal again, while Nepeta fetches the ball. She seems to come to a decision and points to a line on the floor, the biggest circle, which takes up maybe half of the half court. Quarter court? Whatever. “From behind that line.”

You sigh, accept the ball from Nepeta, and go to the line. Your classmates are all giggling and pointing. Haha, Strider’s about to miss a shot he doesn’t actually care about. How humiliating. Definitely worth all our attention.

You make the shot.

The class has stopped giggling. More people are pointing. Heads have gone up like meerkats on a hill. Nepeta’s still standing pretty near you, so you lean in toward her and ask, “What did I do?”

“That’s a three point shot, Dave,” she tells you.

“So?”

“It’s worth the most for a reason.”

Oh.

You thought the coach was making fun of you, but you look at her again and realize that she’s calculating. Did werewolf powers make you good at sports?

You take it all back; this is _definitely_ the worst thing to happen to you so far this week.


	5. Chapter 5

John will not stop laughing.

“It’s not that funny!” you grouse, but you know there’s no winning. When he gets like this, you just have to let him giggle himself out.

“Are you kidding?” John demands. “It’s hilarious! Oh my god, werewolf powers could make you _popular_.”

“They will do no such thing. I refuse,” you insist. “They can’t make me play basketball against my will.”

“Of course not,” Rose purrs with an amused smile. “They’ll make you play lacrosse.”

You stare at her. “The fuck is a lacrosse?” you demand, and John falls out of his seat.

“Dave, it’s the most popular sport at this school,” says Jade. “But, yeah, I have to agree. You can _not_ play sports. You’ll have to learn how to fake being bad at them.”

Rose arches an eyebrow at that. “I have my own reasoning for agreement, but I’d be interested to hear how you arrived to the same conclusion, Jade.”

Jade starts listing reasons on her fingers. “If someone figures out he’s a werewolf, he could be one, caged and tested by the medical community or two, shot by a werewolf hunter.”

“WHOAWHOAWHOA THAT’S A THING?!” you demand.

But Jade doesn’t stop to explain and just keeps listing awful things off on her fingers. “Three, it’s possible that Dave’s bite was a bite of opportunity. If his alpha doesn’t actually know him, that gives us more time to work with before Dave’s under serious threat. But if he suddenly starts showing aptitudes in line with werewolf abilities, it’ll bring his alpha and anyone looking for his alpha right to him.”

Rose interrupts, “I can’t help but noticing that you keep mentioning _his_ alpha, but not－”

“Four,” Jade continues right over her with an impatient tone, “Bitten werewolves have an incredibly difficult time controlling their aggression, which I’m willing to bet is why he even started playing the game this time! Dave, if that goes unchecked, you could transform in front of _everyone_!”

“And then you still get murdered by werewolf hunters,” John says quietly. He’s definitely lost the laughter now and looks appropriately serious about the topic at hand.

“I want off this boat,” you decide firmly. “Jade, you have _got_ to get me off this boat!”

Jade flinches a little. Looks down at her hands. “We’re working on it, Dave,” she says. “I promise.”

Rose turns her attention to John. “So you already knew about this?” she asks.

He nods. “Yeah,” he says. He forces a small smile. “Me and Jane share a grandmother, and Jade and Jake share a grandfather. Nana Crocker and Grampa Harley were siblings born to a werewolf mother, but she married a human and he married a werewolf. Because Jane and I are only quarter wolf, we don’t really count, but-"

" _No_ ," Jade interrupts with an exasperated tone. "You always get it wrong. We're all second-cousins, but you and Jane are second _half_ -cousins to me and Jake. And you're _eighth_ werewolf, not quarter."

John waves her off. "Okay, whatever," he says. "Point is, we can't transform, and we don’t have any of the senses or abilities, but I’m colorblind like Jade and Jake, and so are my dad and uncle, and none of us can eat sugar.”

“I CAN’T EAT SUGAR?!” you demand. You ignore Jade as she corrects John under her breath that his uncle is apparently also a cousin.

“You really are not very good at preventing our classmates from staring at you,” Rose sighs.

You throw a salt packet at her. “Rose, this is way too important to worry about subtlety,” you insist. “They want to take away my _sugar_!”

“Not all of it!” Jade insists with a smile. “You can have it in the form of fruits and vegetables, just not a lot, or you’ll throw up or get diarrhea. As you become more and more wolfish, your eyesight will sharpen, you’ll be able to pick up scents and chemosignals, and you’ll be able to hear a howl from the other side of the city and a heartbeat from across the school. But you’ll need a lot more fat and protein, less veg, and no herbs or added sugar. Also… dead things smell really, really tasty, so try to watch out for that.”

“Great,” you say. “This is affecting literally all of my hobbies.”

“I think we’ve taken our eyes off the ball a bit,” Rose reminds the group. She winks at you. “Apologies for the sports metaphor, David. My point is simply that I think perhaps it should be a priority to address firstly concerns of safety. I, at least, would like to know more about this alpha and the hunters you mentioned.”

“There’s not much to say about the alpha,” says Jade. “We still don’t know who they are yet!”

“Well, could you tell us what to expect, based on common alpha behaviors?” asks Rose.

“Also what the hell an alpha is,” you add.

John nods and leans forward, following Rose’s train of thought. “Okay, yeah, so first of all, there are three types of werewolf power levels: Alpha, Beta, and Omega. Omega wolves, like Jade and Jake, have no pack, so they’re incredibly low power, can barely transform, and have about 80% of the lifespan of a human.”

You and Rose both snap to attention and look to Jade. She’s looking down at her hands.

“Beta werewolves are pack members who follow an alpha. Their energy feeds off their alpha and amplifies their alpha’s energy. They’re noticeably stronger and faster than humans, show more wolf-like traits, can do a semi-wolf transformation, and have about 110-120% of the lifespan of a human,” John continues to explain. “An alpha is a pack leader. You gain the alpha power by overtaking another alpha, usually by way of murder, but that’s not actually a necessity. An alpha _must_ have a pack to retain their power. The larger the pack, the more powerful they are. They can also continue stealing power from alphas for an even bigger boost to themselves and their pack. They are extremely deadly and can be expected to live anywhere from fifty to two hundred years longer than a human, and some of them can go full wolf.”

Rose shakes her head. “I don’t understand,” she says. “It sounds like there’s a lot to gain from being an alpha or beta. How does it affect omegas so poorly?”

“It’s hard to explain,” says Jade. “To be honest, I’m not sure anyone knows all the details. It’s just the way things are, and we’ve learned to accept it as our truth.” She pulls her long black hair around in front of her shoulder to fiddle with it. “I guess the simplest explanation is that… I think, like, whatever magic it is that makes this stuff work, we’re supposed to be conduits. It’s supposed to be part of a natural cycle. That’s why both alphas and betas get powers from each other, as well as the rest of the pack. The same power is flowing between all of them.

“But the power can’t flow in an omega. It’s trapped. And we’re… We’re not built to work that way. We are not adequate containers, and we get worn out.”

“Well, that’s horrifying,” you say. “So what’s the deal with hunters? People really shoot at you?”

Jade shrugs. “Well, not often, since killing people is illegal and all,” she says. “But we’ve got a couple big families in town, due to all the werewolves and organized crime and whatnot. They’ve worked together in the past, I think, but they see things differently. The Pyropes believe in justice. They know that if the cause of a death or mauling is supernatural, the police can’t or won’t find the actual perpetrator. So they do the vigilante thing. Serkets, though, they believe that we’re all monsters and should be put down like animals.”

“If we have two families of werewolf hunters around and they’re not _extremely_ bored, there must be quite a lot of werewolves,” says Rose.

Jade and John exchange nervous glances. “Dave will be able to sense when someone’s a werewolf,” John explains quickly. “Basically just an instinctive ‘my pack’ or ‘not my pack’ response. Smell, too, if they don’t know how to cover that up.”

“Wow, that sure is an evasive answer there, bro,” you say, and John looks away guiltily. Though, suddenly it makes a lot of sense why Jade kept _smelling_ you yesterday. She was trying to figure out your wolf scent. Awesome, that’s not awkward at all.

“I’m sorry, Dave,” says Jade, “but we can’t just openly out people left and right. It’s… Look, people have done that before, and… it did not go well.”

“Yeah, Jake said something about that in the car this morning,” you remember. “Is there a rule that the warnings have to be vague, too, or is it possible I can maybe get some details on that?”

“You’re talking about the Speaker Murders, aren’t you?” asks Rose, and, yup, those are guilty faces.

“What’s a Speaker Murder?” you ask her.

“We were babies when it happened,” Rose tells you. “I only know because I’ve been doing research ever since Googling ‘color blindness following animal bite’ last night brought up several websites about wolves. Back in the early naughts, there was a small, local cult called The Speakers. They believed the town to be in danger from supernatural revenge cycles and that the only way to resolve these cycles was peace by exposure. If everyone knew what was going on, then everyone would be able to keep an eye on it, hold both sides accountable. Mostly, people didn’t listen. They tried showing, too, but it was marked as ‘street performance’ and ‘disrupting the peace.’ Still, slowly, people _were_ listening. But then, one day, the entire group was brutally slaughtered in a single night. The Felt were suspected but nothing ever came of it.”

“It’s been our warning ever since,” Jade says quietly. “‘This is what happens when you put your faith in humans.’”

* * *

“Can I talk to you?” Rose asks suddenly.

You grunt as you sit back up. You’d been letting the quiet car ride back to your apartment lull you into some much needed zs. “Do you have to?” you grumble.

She ignores you, as you suspected she would. Nothing stops a Strilonde from getting their rant on. “I’ve been thinking about how to approach this subject in a way that is most likely to help you to understand my point of view, whether you agree with it or not, so please do forgive me if it seems quite round-about,” she says. “I promise there is a point that I am getting to.”

You stare at her. “... ’kay.”

She nods firmly, more to herself than to you, but keeps her eyes on the road. “I… I don’t know how it was for you, growing up under the care of someone who was, at least by the time you approached awareness of such things, finally out as a homosexual man.”

“Um…” You really do not want to talk about where Bro sheathes his sword, and you’re hoping really hard that this circularly-planned conversation circles elsewhere.

“For me, however, the realization that I had an inclination toward women was… disappointing.”

You blink at her. “Disappointing how?” you ask, not sure what she’s getting at.

She rolls her eyes. “Disappointing as in I was disappointed. I… I didn’t want to be queer, Dave,” she says. “And that surprised me. I’d been raised by a seemingly straight woman but one who was adamant on educating me on my options and letting me know that I’d be loved no matter what. I knew that such inclinations were natural and healthy and that there was nothing wrong with me. So why was I disappointed?

“It took me weeks to figure it out. That this wasn’t about my sexuality, but about my involvement in sexual politics. In one simple revelation, I had gone from someone who defended queer people to someone who defended herself as a queer person, and that is a very, very different status. It wasn’t that I was disappointed to be queer, it’s that I didn’t want to deal with the social consequences. If an ally loses an argument with a bigot, that is upsetting. If a queer person loses an argument with a bigot, that is potentially dangerous.”

You’re watching her carefully, gut twisting, but you’re not sure what she’s getting at. “Rose, has someone－?”

“As I tried to warn you, my sexuality isn’t actually the topic of conversation,” she says quickly. “I’m simply using it to illustrate a point about how two people can be on the same side and yet suffer very different consequences for it. The topic, actually, is Jade, and that you need to be more aware of the things you say to her.”

Well, that wasn’t expected. “The fuck did I say to her?” you demand. “All we have talked about all day is werewolf junk!”

She sighs exaggeratedly to make clear that she thinks you’re an idiot, like that’s even remotely new. “That’s exactly it, Dave,” she says. “Look, you… We all understand where you’re coming from, and we sympathize. You did not consent to becoming a werewolf. You were not previously aware of all that becoming a werewolf entailed. You were not even aware that lycanthropic infection was an even remotely possible, let alone probable, risk when you went out with Aradia the other night. And you are pissed. We get that. Hell, I’d be pissed, too. You’re right; it has turned your life upside down.

“But you’re still coming at this from the angle of a human, from the angle of someone still hoping this is temporary. And I hope that it is! But you must see that Jade is not. She was born this way, Dave. It’s part of her identity as a person. It’s a part of her identity which many people, it seems, use to argue her very inhumanity and a lack of right to life. When you say things like how you want to be fixed, you imply that she is broken. You have, in fact, insulted her repeatedly through the course of the day as you spoke of your affliction. I understand that it’s a difficult line to walk in your current emotional state, but not only is she the _only_ resource you have right now, but she is, supposedly, your friend.”

Sulkingly, you cross your arms and shove your shoulders into your seatback. You really, really hate it when she’s right. “You know she’s lying about being an omega, right?” you ask, hoping to get attention off yourself.

Rose nods. “Yes, I noticed her cagey behavior on the subject,” she says. “For now, I’ve decided it’s not the most important topic and to let the matter breathe a bit before I attempt to dig deeper. How are you so certain, though?”

“John and Jade said omegas are super weak,” you tell her. “But when Jake and Jade rescued me, they were fast and strong, and they were holding back. I didn’t know they were werewolves yet, but I could tell they were slowing down for my sake.”

Rose nods again. “Yes, they seem very personally invested in specifically separating you from your alpha. More so than any of the other concerns of the moment.”

“Well, yeah, he’s a murderer,” you tell her. Then, “Why, what are you thinking?”

“I’m thinking, given how cagey they are about their own alpha and the fact they appear to have lied to John about it… They may personally know just how bad the circumstances are.”

“You think they know who bit me and killed Cronus?” you gasp. That… Okay, yeah, they’ve been weird, but Jade would never hold out on something that might hurt you.

Rose glances at you briefly. “Do you sense them as packmates?” she asks.

“Well, no,” you admit. “But I’m not sure that sense has kicked in yet. I don’t sense them as werewolves, either.”

She nods. “Alright then. I guess we’ll have to consider that as a possibility, though I find it unlikely. My suspicions are, in fact, that while they belong to a different alpha, it may be a dangerous and/or abusive one. One they don’t want their extended family to know about.”

Oh, hey, there’s that nauseous feeling again. You were starting to miss it. “This whole thing is fucked up,” you grumble.

“Quite,” your sister agrees.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edit Feb 5, 2016: Corrected Jade & John's lineage.


	6. Chapter 6

\-- cuttlefishCuller [CC] began trolling turntechGodhead [TG] \--  
CC: Conchgratulations, Dave! You’re finvited to my party!!

If it weren’t for the fact that “cuttlefishCuller” used your actual name, you’d have assumed this was a weirdly sea-themed pornbot. You read over the message more carefully for clues, but of the few people you know who use Trollian, this doesn’t seem to be one of them.

TG: new phone who dis  
CC: )(uh? Why would a new shellphone affect your pesterhandle?  
TG: it doesnt thats a joke  
TG: point is i have no idea who you are but you seem to know who i am  
CC: Wow, suspicious much?  
CC: It’s Feferi, silly!  
TG: no it isnt  
CC: What?  
CC: I’m confused? 8/  
TG: feferi peixes is queen of the junior class  
TG: quite possibly other classes too i wouldnt know  
TG: known for epic parties  
CC: Aaaaaawe!!!  
TG: so why the hell would she be messaging me  
TG: lets note that while trollian may have certain features to its advantage it is called trollian for a reason  
TG: trollian is for trolls  
TG: what reason do i have to think youre not trolling me  
TG: im not an idiot  
CC: LOL! I think maybe you are, considering that I AM Feferi!!  
TG: howd you get my handle then  
CC: My cousin told me!  
TG: cousin  
CC: Yes, cousin!  
CC: Oh, I sea. Yeah, I have a lot of them. I meant Jade!

What the fuck? You’ve known Jade since elementary school. The only cousins she’s ever mentioned are Jake, John, and Jane.

Then again… there’s other things that haven’t been mentioned until recently…

TG: is this a werewolf thing  
CC: What? No, the party is sea themed! My parties are always sea themed because that is the best theme. 8D  
CC: Also because I have a pool.

Right, Peixes has a mermaid thing despite the fact that she’s sixteen years old. This still looks sketchy as hell, though. Why would she be approaching you if this isn’t about werewolves?

TG: why would jade give you my handle  
CC: Shell gave it to me ages ago! She’s alwaves bugging me to invite moray of her friends, but Meenah says that her friends are uncool and Jade only gets invited because we’re obligated by genetics. 8C  
CC: But Meenah isn’t )(ER---E!!

Huh. That… actually sounds plausible. Meenah Peixes is, thankfully, several years older than you and now graduated. But you’d heard she was a notorious bully. That in mind, it makes sense Jade wouldn’t tell you about the Peixes connection until they promised to behave themselves.

Rose’s lecture comes to mind. Jade’s always been welcoming and tried her hardest to make sure her friends were always taken care of, and you’ve been a dick to her all day.

You minimize Feferi’s chat window and start a new conversation with Jade, even though she’s marked as AFK. The girl is never actually that far from a computer.

\-- turntechGodhead [TG] began pestering gardenGnostic [GG] \--  
TG: hey  
\-- gardenGnostic [GG] is an idle chum! --

… Unless she’s asleep.

TG: will jade be there  
CC: Obviously! She’s the whole reason I’m inviting you!!  
TG: yeah okay send me the address when is it  
CC: Tonight!  
CC: I hope that’s not shore notice?  
TG: it is but meh  
CC: AW-ESOM-E!!! SEA YOU SOON!!  
\-- cuttlefishCuller [CC] ceased trolling turntechGodhead [TG] \--

What could go wrong?

－ －

You’re handed a beer the second you enter. That explains how Peixes is so popular despite the Little Mermaid schtick and all the fish puns. Quality parenting right here.

Her house is huge and yet somehow she has still figured out how to stuff way too many bodies into it. You think most of these people aren’t from your school district. You’ve spent a lot of years convincing yourself that you’re not a party person so you don’t actually mind that you’re never invited. As it turns out, you were right. It’s hot, and it’s crowded, and it stinks of sweat, hormones, booze, and way too much perfume and cologne. You put your back to the wall of the stairs to get some breathing room and pull out your phone to check Pesterchum. Jade is still idle. Is she asleep or is she at the party? You only really came to get a chance to talk to her before Monday.

“What are you doing here?”

You look up to see Karkat Vantas sitting on the stairs above your head. “What are you doing here?” you counter.

He rolls his eyes. “Sollux is dating Feferi, so she’s constantly pestering me to hang out, probably for his sake,” he admits.

Huh. “Basically the same here,” you admit. He raises an eyebrow. “Jade, not Sollux.”

He cocks his head at that. “Jade and Feferi don’t hang out.”

Crap. It was a trick after all. At least you’re not far from the d－ “DAVE!” cries a bubbly voice and someone tackles you from the side in what you suppose is intended to be a friendly manner. “Oh my glub, I’m so glad you could mackerel it! Are you ready to party?!”

Eugh, puns. Carefully, you remove her stranglehold on your neck and turn to face her. She’s shorter than you, but twice as wide, all curves, and has decorated her skimpy, skimpy bathingsuit (nng) with an epic fuckload of jewelry. Does she actually swim like that? “You said Jade would be here,” you remind her.

She waves a hand dismissively. “So, I forgot it was shark week for her,” she says. “Big eel! I don’t know if you’ve noticed, Davy Jones, but there are plenty of other people here!”

You glance back up the stairs. Vantas has disappeared. “Yeah, but－”

“Pike me for example!”

Wait what?

She’s pulling you down the hall, away from the front door. “Come on! Dance with me!”

What. “Aren’t you dating Captor?”

Feferi laughs loudly, bubbling and silly. Not one damn care in the world. “It’s a dance, not a date!” she teases you. She pulls you out into the backyard where there’s tables of drinks and food around a really expensive-looking pool and a live DJ at the back end. She throws parties this big at least once a month? Just because? How loaded is this chick? “It would be such a shame to have a pretty buoy at my house and not get around to dancing with him!”

Your attention snaps from the DJ’s equipment to Feferi’s playful grin. “You think I’m pretty?” you deadpan. Is _this_ a werewolf thing?

Her grin grows wider, she pulls you abruptly against her, and she does something absolutely terrible with her hips that is possibly related to her concept of dancing. “You’re really funny!”

… You’re pretty sure you were doing something. What were you doing?

Your fingers hurt, and you look down to see claw tips. Oh shit. You do your best to back up a step, but she easily follows as though she didn’t even notice. “Okay, that’s cute, but leave room for Jesus.” You sound a little like you’re begging. That’s because you are.

“Oh come on, Davy, lighten up!” she giggles. “You can’t come to a party and not dance! Here, I’ll show you how!” And then she fucking grabs your hips and moves them for you, giggling all the while.

Is _this_ the joke? You look around, but she’s the only one giggling specifically at you. No one else even notices. Sollux is around on the other side of the pool, but he doesn’t seem to care, so that’s not the trick either. Fuck it, you won’t find out without participating, and you really need her to stop grabbing you like that. You can feel her pulse through her fingertips, and it is doing terrible, terrible things to your new instincts.

You pull her hands off you, spin her around, and move with her to the beat in a way much less taunting to your dick. She laughs happily, throwing up her hands in glee. “That’s the spirit!” she cheers. “Another happy convert!”

“What, are you recruiting for your cult?” you ask, trying your very best not to notice how fucking delicious she smells. “All hail the almighty Peixes ass?”

“Oh, is that what you like best about me?” she teases, and dammit, this was a bad position, because a half-step backward for her and her ass is pressed into your crotch, Jesus abandoned. She laughs again and, thankfully, turns to face you. She hooks her arms over your shoulders, and if you hold her hips, despite the fact that this isn’t a slow dance, you’re able to keep them off of yours. Thing is, your claws are threatening to tear into her skin, and you’re not sure how long you can keep her from noticing. You glance at Sollux again, but he’s mostly laughing at how bad you are at dancing. You mouth a plead for him to take her away from you, but he laughs and flips you off with both hands. There is no god.

“So, have you seen Eridan lately?” she asks.

“What?” You return your attention to the sexy little mermaid in your arms, but you can’t recall what caused this turn of conversation. You’re a little distracted by the wolfishness threatening to expose itself in front of everyone. “Eridan who?”

She giggles. “Eridan Ampora, of course! Do you know any otters?”

You blink at her and consider that this woman might be fucking insane. “His brother was mauled to death a few days ago. Don’t you think it’s a bit soon for him to attend a party?”

She shrugs. “So your father hasn’t found him?”

Blink blink. “Eridan’s a suspect?” you ask. This conversation has quickly gotten away from you.

“Hm, I wouldn’t know. You’re the one related to the police department.” The song changes, and Feferi is moving on to another target. “Let minnow immediately if you see him, okay?!” she calls back over her shoulder. “Meenah and I are _so worried_!”

This just went from weird to hella creepy, and you need to get out. You pull out your phone as you approach the house mostly to deter anyone else from “dancing” at you, and you find that Jade has finally texted you back.

GG: oh hi dave!!  
GG: sorry i tend to sleep a lot during full moons :/ its the easiest way to control the urges, for me at least.  
GG: if youre typing you must be doing pretty okay for a first timer tho!!!  
GG: dave?  
GG: dave?  
TG: its a full moon  
TG: that explains a lot  
GG: why? what happened??  
TG: peixes tricked me into going to a party im not sure why  
TG: control is hard  
TG: its hard and nobody understands  
TG: except you obviously  
TG: and jake  
TG: and the motherfucker that bit me  
GG: GET OUT OF THERE NOW  
TG: well im fine now that ive got peixes off my dick  
TG: seriously you dont have to worry  
GG: YES I DO OH MY GOD DAVE YOU HAVE TO LEAVE YOU HAVE TO LEAVE RIGHT NOW  
GG: DAVE RUN!!!!  
TG: what

You are yanked by the elbow very suddenly around the corner of the house. You really wish people would stop doing that. The grabber shoves you against the wall, behind a bush, and clamps a hand over your mouth for some reason. You are definitely not appreciating the kind of attention you appear to get at parties, and you will never go to another one. Moral lesson acquired.

Oh hey, it’s Eridan. “What are you doing here?” he demands.

You pointedly shove his hand off your mouth. “It’s a party, dunkass.” Just because you hate parties doesn’t mean literally everyone (okay two people) should treat it like it’s a sign of the apocalypse. “Feferi’s looking for you.”

His glances, briefly, toward the pool. He looks… disappointed? “Oh,” is apparently all he has to say about that.

He is way too up in your personal space considering that your pants snake still has not calmed all the way down. You are now dead certain that Feferi Peixes is your new mortal nemesis just for getting your hormones activated around creeps like Ampora. Maybe _this_ was the trick. “Why do you care what I do?” you demand, trying to get this conversation over as quickly as possible.

Ampora steps back, watches you carefully. Why? Why does _everyone_ have all eyes on you, suddenly? “Because there’s monsters around, Dave.”

Oh.

Right.

The murder.

You swallow a guilty lump in your throat. “Yeah, well…” You step forward to move past him, but he doesn’t move, still eying you carefully. Eugh, creep. “Look, just… Just go enjoy the party, okay? Animals don’t like loud noises, so I’m pretty sure you’re safe here.” You slide awkwardly past him and make a beeline for the front of the house. Once you’re on the dimly lit street, you glance back to make sure Eridan isn’t still around before you pull out your phone and dial the Sheriff.

“Dave, I’m busy,” Bro answers. “Are you missing a limb?”

“No, I was just… Look, is Eridan Ampora a suspect?”

There’s a pause on the other end, then, “We have no reason to think Eridan ripped up his brother like the fucking Hulk, no, but we can’t find him and that’s a concern.”

You run your hand back through your hair. “Yeah, I’m at the Peixes house party. He’s here.”

“Since when did you go to parties?” asks Bro. “No, wait, that was the dumb question. Do you think he’ll be staying there long enough for us to pick him up?”

“I’m not sure,” you admit. “He was acting pretty weird.”

“Weird how?”

“He was warning me to stay safe from monsters? Wanted me to leave? Which is fine, because I was leaving anyway.”

“I don’t suppose there’s a fire alarm you could pull?”

That’s… not the reaction you were expecting. You glance worriedly back toward the house. “Uh, why?”

“Because warning someone to stay away from a vague danger is often a thing people do _before they cause that danger_.”

“Right. One fire alarm coming right up,” you say. You’re already heading back into the house.

“Thanks, little man. Jake is on his way. I’m on my way out.”

“Cool, later.” You shove your phone back into your pocket, look around at the people gathered on the porch, and tap the shoulder of the first smoker you see. “Yo, can I borrow a light?”

He looks at you kinda funny, probably because you don’t actually have a cigarette in hand yet, but he hands over his lighter. “Cool. Thanks.” You head back inside, ignoring his protests. Behind you, his friends laugh at him.

You quickly look around for smoke detectors and find one on the stairs that Karkat had been sitting on earlier. You hurry up, shove aside a couple making out, stand on your tippy toes, and light the lighter directly under it. It takes a couple minutes, and your arm and calves begin to ache, but finally the damn thing goes off. And, because the Peixes are rich enough for a _good_ system, so do all the others in the house. People stand around confused for a moment with their hands over their ears before the sober kids start herding them out.

You run smack into Karkat when you hop off the stairs. “Oh, uh, oops,” you say, eloquent as ever.

“You’re right by the door, fuckass. You don’t actually have to run around in blind terror,” he reminds you. And then he looks down and sees the lighter in your hand. He looks back up at your face and cocks his head curiously. Before you can concoct an excuse, he shakes his head with one of those classic "I'm not smiling" Karkat smiles. "You're a dumbass," he says as he leaves.

Your boner is very confused.


	7. Chapter 7

It is going to be a long walk home. Especially since you need to go a round-about route in order to avoid the oncoming emergency vehicles. That’ll teach Peixes to invite you to a party and be friendly at you. At least your own pants party is under control again.

Of course, the rest of your hormones haven’t gotten the notice. You haven’t wanted to spar this badly since Dirk’s last epic fuckup, and no one even did anything to you. You wonder if you’re going to turn into him, the alpha. Is that how it works? Now that you’re sharing energy or whatever, you’re doomed to have the personality of a monster? Will you start mauling up kids in the woods? Murdering innocent Amporas?

Okay, no, whatever happened with Cronus, he probably deserved it.

Urg. No, Dave, stop. Ugh, morals are hard when your blood is boiling and your skin is itching and you have a really distinct awareness that your legs should be tired after walking on asphalt for two miles, but they’re not, and somehow that pisses you off.

If you turn into an uncontrollable monster, how long will you be able to hide it from Bro? How long until he looks at you with horror? Terror? Betrayal?

You yelp and leap about a foot in the air when something huffs behind you. You spin around. “Oh, it’s you,” you tell the massive white dog. Okay, he’s actually kind of regular size. And, well, he did save your life recently. You sigh and squat down at his level, reaching a hand out like Jade taught you (or tried to anyway). “Hey, buddy. Thanks for the save. Mind if I check you for wounds?”

Becquerel gives you a curious look but obliges. Hesitantly, you run your hand through thick fur, careful to mind your un-retracted claws. You can’t even see his skin for all the fur, much less any wounds. You hand comes away covered in clumps of white fuzz. Eugh. “Well, you’re white, so I guess I’d see something if you were bleeding,” you grumble. You wipe your hands off on your pants and stand up again. “Jade’s probably already found you and fixed you anyway.”

“RRRRR!”

You back up quickly, hands up like that’s actually going to help anything. “Whoa, whoa! Okay! Touchy subject!”

“ROWR ROWR ROWR!” Becquerel barks, hopping a little with each yap. It’d be comical if it wasn’t fucking terrifying.

“Is that mongrel yours?”

You turn. Oh. So that’s what a “look out behind you” bark sounds like. Nice to know. You swallow nervously. “Serket,” you greet. “Hope you’re not on your way to the party, ‘cuz I’m pretty sure it’s been busted.”

Vriska Serket bends sideways a little to look past you to Becquerel. “Hunting, actually,” she says. Becquerel snarls at her. You step smoothly between them. If the dog were human, that would very definitely be a look of “Idiot, _I_ am supposed to protect _you_.” Yeah, no. You know Jade loves you, but you’re pretty sure she loves her dog more. She treats it like fam－

Becquerel’s a fucking werewolf, isn’t he? You give him a dirty look. He seems to have no idea why you would do that.

“I heard you got attacked by a bear,” says Vriska.

“Cougar,” you say quickly. Your skin feels like it’s on fire, and you wonder if you’re sprouting fur. You wonder if she can see.

“Laaaaaaaame!” she mocks. Ha, good. You’re pretty sure that if she thinks your injury is interesting, she’ll fucking shoot you. She grins brightly. “Can I see it?”

Your claws are still out, and you shove your hands into your pockets. Her eyes follow your movement. “Gonna be honest with you, Serket, I have been felt up enough today, and I just want to go home.”

She laughs at that. It’s not cute and bubbly like Feferi’s. It rasps like a metal edge. “Oh, sure, I bet your skinny butt is the most popular one there,” she teases.

“You been looking at my butt, Serket?” You take a step forward, and Becquerel nips at your ankle. “Hey!”

Suddenly, she’s in your face, grinning like a horror movie villain. You realize that, all things considered, she probably does count as one. “Are you _sure_ it was a cougar?” she asks.

You grin right back at her. You want to find out what her blood tastes like. “Bears don’t meow you stupid, stinking hag.”

She falls back a step, laughing her ass off with that fucking door hinge squawking. Becquerel bites you again, and you shove him aside. “Oh, man, look at the balls on this one!” she cries. “Better watch your tongue, pretty boy, or someone’s gonna cut it off.”

“You’re awfully obsessed with my body, Serket.”

Her attention pulls away from you when an approaching car starts honking. The headlights shine as cat eyes. She scowls. “Catch you later, Puppy!” she taunts before hurrying off into the woods.

“Oh, no, you don’t!” you snarl. You take off after her, ignoring Rose’s honks. But you’re barely past the treeline when Becquerel tackles you, jaws locked around your throat. You won’t be able to throw him without losing a lot of blood. This doesn’t stop you from swearing at him.

When Rose steps in front of you, a slender dagger in each hand, you can see her bright as day. You can hear the way she measures her breath. You definitely hear the fact that her exterior calm has done nothing to slow her panicking heartbeat. “Get the dog off me,” you snap. “I’m gonna fucking _KILL HER!_ ”

She just stares at you.

“ _LET ME UP!!_ ”

She sighs and puts her daggers away on her belt. Then, she pulls a hypodermic needle out of her pocket, removes the cap, tilts it up, and pushes the bubbles out. She crouches as far from you as she can while still able to reach you and pins your left wrist to the ground. “I promise you, Dave,” she says, and you growl at her as the needle slides in, “we are going to fix this.”

You have vague memories of the car trip, but you don’t really wake up until a few hours later in your bed. You try to sit up but your wrist is cuffed to the headboard. With three pairs of handcuffs.

“Are you yourself yet?” Dirk asks wearily.

You jump back, trying to sit up in a way that hides your wrist. Your half-brother is sitting on your floor with his back leaning against your door. His katana rests across his lap, his hand very, very near the hilt. “Dirk, uh, this isn’t…”

“Dude, who do you think chained you to the bed?” he asks.

No. No, no, no. He can’t know. There’s nothing he can figure out that Bro can’t figure out. You’ve learned that lesson way too many times. You swallow hard. “Uh, so I guess the party was kind of a bad decision, and I’m sorry if－”

He laughs at you. The dick! “Dude, when I had to help Rose haul your half-unconscious ass out of the car, I will admit that is what I thought. I thought you were high or drunk or both, and I was already planning the long, long lecture for when you sobered up,” he tells you. “But then you tried to claw my face off. With actual claws. So I decided maybe my presumptions had been a bit hasty.”

You swallow again. “So… Rose told you everything, then?”

“Rose told me nothing,” he says. “She said that she felt she had invalidated your autonomy enough for the night.”

“That jerk.”

He almost sort of smirks at that. “I know, right?” He waits for you to speak, but you don’t. Your chest is tight and to be honest, you’re kind of hoping you’re still asleep. “So… this is why you’re suddenly colorblind?”

You nod. You don’t look at him. You just nod.

“Which followed the attack in the woods, so… That’s what caused it?”

Again, you nod.

“And now…” He sighs and lets his head thump back against the door. “Sorry, give me a minute. It takes a lot of willpower to let myself say something this stupid.”

You can’t help but smile at that. You twist in your bed again so that your wrist is at a less awkward angle. “Do I want to know why you have three pairs of handcuffs?” you ask.

He clucks at you. “Get real. Those are all Bro’s. We have somewhere around fifty in this apartment because he keeps misplacing them.”

“Misplaced?” you ask. “Like I misplaced all of your Rainbow Dashes? And every Rainbow Dash you got as replacement?”

He shrugs. “Eh, sometimes. Mostly, he just can’t be assed to look for things. Which is probably why he was never actually a detective.” He looks you over. “Dave… Ugh… Dave, are you a… Are you a goddamn werewolf?”

“Yeah,” you tell him.

“Well… fuck.”

“Basically,” you agree. You pull at your handcuffs a little, mostly because it’s the only thing you can do right now that doesn’t involve looking him in the eye.

“Are you okay?”

You turn back to him. He looks worried. And for him to look worried, he must be super fucking worried. “Yeah,” you say. It comes out a little rough.

He arches an eyebrow at you.

“Well, okay, no,” you admit. “But… I will be. I think. I hope.” You swallow again. “Are you… Are you going to tell Bro?”

Dirk shrugs. “I honestly don’t know,” he admits. “Tell me why I shouldn’t.”

“Because I can fix this!” you cry, leaning forward desperately. You ignore the way his fingers tighten on that hilt, the way his eyes flick to your handcuffs. “I can fix it. If I can find my alpha… If I can find the wolf that bit me, and I kill him, I get cured. This all goes away. Like none of it ever happened.”

“Dave, two people are dead,” he says. “Do you really want to add to that list? Do you think that you even can? Like, that’s the person you are now? Someone who kills people?”

“I have to,” you say. Your voice is small, desperate. So are you. “I have to fix this.”

Dirk looks down at his katana. He doesn’t say anything.

It’s then that you realize what he’s said. “What do you mean two people?” you ask.

“Maya Peixes was found the next county over,” he says. “They think it’s connected. Peixes girls have a mysterious habit of drowning young, but Maya had her throat torn open and was nowhere near water. They’ve already sent animal hairs in for testing. Gonna guess now that it comes in wolfy.

“This is bigger than you.”

You don’t say anything to that. You don’t know what to say. He’s not wrong, but you wish to hell that he was.

He sighs, stands, stretches his limbs out. He’s probably been sitting there for a while, but you get the feeling he’s not gonna leave or even sleep until the sun comes up again. “I’ll make you a deal,” he said. “I don’t tell Bro as long as nothing comes up that interferes with his investigation. If… If there’s an opportunity to… to cure you. Safely. We…” He sighs again. “I’ll back you up on that. But I don’t want you chasing after a murderer by yourself likes some kind of crazed vigilante or Pyrope or something.”

You snort at that. You can’t help it. “Pyropes are werewolf hunters,” you inform him. “So are Serkets.”

“Well, that explains a fucking lot.”

You sigh and nod. You know he’s right, but this was your one hope. But… Even Jade said it wasn’t very likely to work. “Alright,” you say. “Deal.”

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Incantation](https://archiveofourown.org/works/8173210) by [NovaStars42](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NovaStars42/pseuds/NovaStars42)




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